The Greater Good
by xXBalorBabeXx
Summary: The one change they make to a storyline starts to involve everyone... but how does it change them? (Co-written with Cry-Of-A-Warp-Engine)
1. Can't Keep It Secret

"Too much today? Did you fall the wrong way? Mandy, lie down." Finn responded before helping Amanda lie on her side… she had her legs curled towards her and was sore and it worried him as she had been helping out with the ones signed to the Performance Centre, helping them sharpen their ring skills and learn new ones.

But she sat up anyway and whispered it to him, the reason why she was in pain.

"Oh damn…" Finn said quietly.

"Sometimes it gets really bad… I've been dealing with Endometriosis since I was 17 when I had a checkup to get either the shot or the pill and it came back that I have a far less chance of having kids than I thought. That hurt when I found that out… hurt a lot worse than the physical pain." Amanda replied, Finn reaching over and brushing her tears away. "For as long as I can remember, I've imagined a family… kids, little ones who'd have more love than they'd know what to do with. And when I found out it might not happen… it was like everything just stopped around me." She said as his hands wrapped around hers.

"Anything is possible, if we try hard enough… even the most seemingly impossible miracles can be real." Finn replied, both looking each other in their eyes as he spoke.

"It is… and I know one day, it'll happen…" Amanda said before both heard the doors of the Performance Centre open.

"No, I am not going back to it!" Cody responded.

"I'm sorry Cody but they're not budging on the Stardust storyline." Hunter said, Cody tossing one of his boots into the ring and Amanda letting out a scream as it hit her in the face.

"Fuck, Cody, was that even necessary?!" Amanda yelled, Finn seeing a cut on her lower lip.

"Damn it… I'm sorry Mandy, I didn't see you there…" Cody responded as he stepped over.

"Yeah… well I suggest you take up old tactics again and 'look before you leap'!" Finn responded, as he took a pack of tissues from his pocket and lightly held a couple on Amanda's lower lip, Amanda moving her hand up to hold it herself a few moments later.

"Look, it's just a little cut, she'll be fine!" Cody said as Finn helped Amanda up and she leaned against him. "Something else happen?" He asked.

"One of the rookies got a bit too crazy, that's all." Finn answered before taking Amanda towards the locker room and putting her on the couch.

"I don't know what's gotten into him, I think his current storyline is getting to his mind." Amanda muttered.

"You're half his size, he doesn't need to go throwing things at you." Finn said.

"There's one thing Hunter mentioned, possibly making Stardust an interchangeable character and getting someone else in the role… he's just not sure who though." Amanda responded.

"I'm not sure either… the storyline is involving a good number of us already." Finn replied, the two thinking for a moment. "I'm not sure where they'd interchange it either… there's quite a lot in the way of character arrivals this time around, it's almost like they're having multiple conflicts at once."

"Wouldn't be the first time, but… there's a lot more now." Amanda responded, the two looking at each other afterwards. "Gonna get chaotic." They both said simultaneously, chuckling afterwards.

"Especially with it getting closer to Wrestlemania." Finn replied.

"We still have to go through Fastlane and Roadblock… what were the writers smoking when they came up with those names for pay per views?" Amanda questioned before the two laughed. "I miss the old In Your House ones… but I'd never want Over The Edge to come back, too many horrible memories." She said.

"That was a real rough one… but we're lucky that they don't reuse storylines. Maybe sequel them, but not make something like a new version of the same storyline." Finn replied.

"Good thing just as long as they never even think of redoing the whole Undertaker trying to make Stephanie his bride storyline, that was too much… I still remember him setting that little teddy bear on fire." Amanda said as she leaned against Finn, who carefully wrapped his right arm around her shoulders. "One of my favorites from the Attitude Era was the referees going on strike… they have a thankless job and I was happy to see them fight back."

"They did… and it came out well. In some moments, it even overtook the focus on the storyline itself." Finn replied, as Amanda let out a long breath and settled into his arms around her.

Amanda would've dozed off were it not for the knock at the door. She tried to stand up, only for Finn to stop her as her legs started to buckle and answer the door himself, Amanda's eyes widening slightly.

"Shawn?" Amanda responded as she and Shawn Michaels hugged. "I thought you couldn't get a flight out of San Antonio til tomorrow." She said after they let go.

"There was a smaller plane flying the same way. Slightly more expensive but worth it to get here… you hurt yourself, Mandy?" Shawn responded, the last part as he noticed her slightly shaking legs, still slightly tensed from nearly collapsing under her before.

"Just a little sore." Amanda replied, Shawn noticing the cut on her lip and looking at Finn.

"Who hit her?!" Shawn asked.

"Cody threw his boot without looking. The bad part was that he said 'she'd be fine, it's only a cut'. Which is true physically but, you know… shock and memory reflexes last a lot longer than a cut does." Finn answered.

"I wanted to smack Cody for that… we had a different kind of bond when we were kids but it's not there anymore." Amanda said, Shawn lightly pulling a blanket over Amanda's lower body and putting a pillow under her before getting her to lean back into the couch.

"That's better, now you're comfy…" Shawn said, before sitting down on the bench nearby. "I learnt years ago that… everything ends… and it's always sad. But what's ended… doesn't have to be gone. In thought and memory, it's always there somewhere."

"It is." Amanda responded as Shawn kissed her on her forehead before he headed out and nodded at Finn for him to keep an eye on Amanda. "He's gonna go find him." She said as Finn sat down on the bench and lightly rubbed his left hand up and down her shoulder.

"Yep he is, lass…" Finn responded.


	2. Long Time, No See

Cody was about to get in the ring when he heard "Boy, we need to talk.", turned and saw Shawn.

"Found Mandy?" Cody asked as he walked over.

"Yes, and Finn… and they told me what you did." Shawn responded, before a hard hit landed on Cody's jaw, throwing him back a few paces. "The fuck were you thinking?! Accident is one thing, saying it doesn't matter?!"

"I got agitated seeing him comfort her!" Cody said through gritted teeth from the pain.

"They mean the world to each other in ways you clearly don't understand… him comforting her was something that you stopped doing a while ago, and once you step out of line, there's no returning to your place, you go right to the back again!" Shawn replied.

"And what about when things change and she can't even have his kid?! Me and her tried years ago and every time came back with nothing so I went looking for someone who could-" Cody shouted, cut off by Shawn grabbing him by his shirt as he never knew the reason why Amanda had broken up with Cody in 2012.

"Then that's where you went wrong!" Shawn yelled, shoving Cody back until he hit his head on the wall. "You really don't understand it, do you?! A relationship isn't just about having kids, or sex, or being able to tell everyone you have a partner, it's more than that! It's all of those and more… and taking out one brick doesn't bring the whole tower down, unless _someone_ says 'forget it' and shoves it down themself!"

Cody pulled himself up and limped off as Shawn went to go clear his head outside… he kicked a car tire, only to evoke a startled scream from its blonde and red ombre haired driver.

"Sorry, Little Miss Bliss." Shawn apologized as Alexa got out and walked over. "Is that from last week's match?" He asked, pointing out the black eye she had.

"That and I double-crossed Roman's adopted daughter… I'm honestly surprised by how hard she's able to hit now, she really aimed that one." Alexa answered, closing the car door.

"Strength can surprise people. Double crossing, I know well though Jannetty never hit me like that." Shawn said.

"And for this warm up session, I got stuck with Mandy… stupid raffle decision." Alexa responded, muttering the last part.

"Hey, there's a lot of fights coming up. It's practically luck of the draw with them as well… you've read over the summary of Stardust, right?" Shawn replied.

"Yeah. Wait, where is she?" Alexa responded, looking for Amanda.

"Slight snag, she went through a session with a former Tough Enough contestant and got roughed up a bit." Hunter answered after walking over.

"A bit?! The poor kiddo's knees nearly buckled!" Shawn said.

"Okay… more than a bit. Whatever the extent, she won't be training any more today, that much is obvious." Hunter responded.

"Of course…" Alexa muttered as she headed into the building.

"What's the deal there? Do they fight off camera too?" Shawn asked.

"More than you'd like to believe… they've had problems for a while, but it just seems like the more time that passes, the more it escalates. From little threats to deliberately leaving the script to getting physical… even to Bliss attempting to inflict more mental attacks, like releasing the secrets that Mandy wanted to keep backstage and out of the public." Hunter explained.

"Gimme five minutes and I can get Bliss to behave a lot more like Cheyenne." Shawn said, Hunter stopping him.

"We don't need any more chaos backstage. Creative is putting this new storyline together and it's tough enough to follow as it is without extra backstage conflicts going on." Hunter responded.

"Alright." Shawn grumbled.

"And Cody said that you swore at him? I didn't think you did that anymore." Hunter said.

"I couldn't exactly hold back after what he did to Mandy…" Shawn replied before speaking quieter. "He said that the reason he started cheating on her was because she couldn't give him children."

"Damn… I remember how devastated she was when she found out about the diagnosis. But I think it'll happen one day for her…" Hunter whispered.

After getting cleaned up and redressed, Amanda stretched out on her right side before feeling a heating pad being put on her waist and hip areas and seeing Finn.

"You're too damn good to me…" Amanda said as she felt the low heat loosen the painful internal muscles.

"You deserve only my best." Finn responded as he held the pack there, and offered her his sports bottle filled with chilled water.

She sipped it slowly, letting the water soothe her dried out throat and stopped for a few minutes before both saw that from the Tv, TMZ was waiting outside.

"And the vultures are back." Amanda muttered as the two chuckled slightly before one of the cameramen asked Hunter how the storyline was going so far and if there was a setback.

"Oh, only the usual things. Pulled muscles and role confusion. But trust me… it will be 'out of this world'." Hunter answered.

"Is there something that explains Mandy's shakiness and near collapse on NXT last night?" The cameraman asked.

"Uh, no comment on that." Hunter said abruptly.

"Shawn, how are you enjoying retired life?" A second cameraman asked.

"It's quiet… sometimes I miss the old days actually. Gets a bit _too_ quiet occasionally." Shawn answered.

"Wait til Cameron's learning how to drive." Amanda and Finn said simultaneously.

"Are they still inside the building?"

"Yes and I suggest giving them their space, pencil neck." Shawn responded.

At the same time, Alexa's and Emma's heads snapped up when they heard that in their locker room.

"Current era Shawn Michaels threatening a reporter." Emma said with a chuckle.

"Didn't that seem a bit suspicious though the way Hunter dodged that question?" Alexa asked.

"Well if it's something very personal to Mandy, then he's not gonna say anything, is he?... I only hope it's nothing too serious." Emma replied.

Alexa nodded and the tiny diva went to find Brian Kendrick.

After a while, Amanda and Finn snuck out the back and were startled by cameras and microphones, Finn pulling Amanda to him to shield her.

"No questions. Now scram!" Finn responded as he guided Amanda to the Altima and the two left.

"Persistent bunch they are." Amanda said.

"Yeah, but at least decent enough to not do the classic of following us on cheap motorbikes." Finn replied as he looked in the mirrors, seeing that they weren't being followed by anyone other than the regular road traffic.

At the apartment, the two settled in and Amanda answered a video call from Roman.

"Hey. Family doing okay?" Amanda asked.

"All cheerful as always… you'd be surprised actually. Not so little Sylvia is overseeing Stardust's production." Roman answered.

"Seems just like yesterday she was handed a script…" Amanda said as Roman noticed that her lower lip was swollen.

"It does… you hurt yourself again?" Roman responded.

"Cody threw his ring boot, didn't see where he was aiming… and today probably wasn't the best day to help the upstarts. I'm okay now, just worn out." Amanda answered.

"Well rest up… and eat more, you scared me last night!" Roman said.

"I'm alright and I'm eating properly, Roman." Amanda responded.

"You collapsed for some reason, obviously… whatever it is, I hope you can fix it." Roman replied.

"I hope so too…" Amanda said before she saw Dean appear in the camera. "Hey Deano!"

"Mandy! How you doing there?... apart from looking like a bee stung your chin?" Dean responded, walking over towards the camera.

"Worn out but okay… well, sort of, my legs nearly gave out." Amanda answered, Dean turning to Roman.

"She got a low sugar level or something?" Dean questioned.

"No one's sure but she needs to take better care of herself." Roman said before both saw Finn in the background. "Keep an eye on our Shield sister please?"

"Always will. Dean, why do you have Terry Funk's chainsaw?" Finn responded.

"Scripted for Mania… we'll be watching you." Dean answered before the video call ended.

"The docs scheduled a Wellness test for me, didn't they?" Amanda asked after she saw the look Finn had.

"They weren't open to debate it." Finn answered, as he'd gotten up and started putting together some coffee. "Coffee or your herbal tea?"

"Herbal. Don't need the caffeine rush now." Amanda answered as Finn got the peppermint tea out of the cupboard.

At the same time in the Reigns house, Roman and Dean were retracing the time spent around Amanda.

"Monday, she seemed okay, what about Tuesday?" Roman responded.

"Tuesday, she seemed a bit jetlagged… at least that's what I thought. Was she alright Wednesday morning?" Dean answered, Roman remembering that Amanda didn't drink coffee that day.

"She seemed to be… did change her routine a bit though. No coffee, started her practise later than usual… and I mean by nearly two hours." Roman responded.

"Something ain't right." Dean muttered before both saw Galina.

"Is Mandy okay?" Galina asked.

"That's what we're trying to figure out… but I'm sure she'll be fine. Some things just aren't adding up is all." Roman answered.

"Some things don't at times." Galina said before she and Roman kissed.

It was later into the night that Finn looked over and saw that Amanda, now in her pajamas and her face cleaned up, had dozed off with her head on his right shoulder.

"Busy time…" Finn said quietly. He wouldn't change now, but instead he carefully shifted himself down from being sat against the headboard, careful to not wake Amanda as he moved them to laying down in the bed.

Amanda remained in her deep sleep, mind off in dream land...


	3. When We Sleep

**A/N: Graphic nightmare in this chapter.**

 _Amanda waited nervously in the restroom of the arena, pacing back until she heard the door open and was caught off guard by Alexa._

" _What are you doing here?!" Both asked each other simultaneously… before Alexa saw the three tests that each read Positive and looked at Amanda in disbelief._

" _I thought… you said it wasn't possible…" Alexa said, quietly as her eyes were locked on the tests._

" _A doctors diagnosis doesn't mean there can't be some kind of medical advancement." Amanda explained, Alexa's steel blue eyes narrowing at the brunette._

" _Or a lie to cut off any rumors! To kill a relationship you couldn't actually just say no to, oh never have you ever learnt the word 'no' even once, have you?!" Alexa responded with an angry growl._

" _Come on, why don't you believe that miracles happen?!" Amanda asked._

" _Oh, I'll believe in them alright! I'll believe in miracles the day you and that horny Irishman decide to get yourselves outta this damn company!" Alexa responded._

" _We ain't going nowhere from this company!" Amanda said, heading towards the door but Alexa grabbed her by her hair and received a spinning backfist, the diva yelling in pain and reeling back._

 _Alexa grabbed a kendo stick after following Amanda into the hallway and slammed it into Amanda's arms as Amanda put them in front of her stomach to protect the kids._

 _Alexa slammed it into Amanda's back repeatedly until she was pulled off of Amanda and Amanda felt Finn's arms around her._

" _Alexa, the hell is your damn problem?!" Finn yelled._

" _That error of creation… will never happen!" Alexa growled._

" _I'd feel much better if you put down a weapon you really have no idea how to use." They heard, Alexa turning around to see Sylvia stood there with her arms folded over her chest._

" _As if you getting in bed wasn't bad enough…" Alexa said… moments before Sylvia dashed forwards, grabbing the Kendo stick as she passed her before turning around, using the momentum of her turn to increase the strength of the hit she then delivered to Alexa's side, between her hip and ribs, which locked up her muscles for a split second and sent her down to the floor._

 _Amanda felt Finn pick her up before she started losing consciousness…_

Amanda's eyes snapped open, her looking around before she felt Finn's arms wrap around her again and his hand smoothing her hair back.

"Only a dream, love… you're alright." Finn said quietly, him having known that Amanda had a nightmare when she'd jolted in his arms as she woke up.

Amanda nodded as she took deep breaths to steady her shaking frame and both hearing a knock outside the bedroom door, knowing Sami had gotten into the house again.

"It's just Sami…" Finn whispered as he helped Amanda sit up when the door opened and Amanda saw Sami in the doorway, Sami seeing through the darkened room that Amanda had tears threatening to spill out of her eyes.

"It's okay to let feelings out, Mandy… holding them in is when they grow until they burst and overpower us." Sami said quietly, as Finn was lightly rubbing Amanda's back with his right hand, her left hand having absentmindedly gripped onto his which had been rested on his leg.

"Alexa and I… got into a fight in the nightmare… it was worse than the others, she took a kendo stick and tried to kill me with it… and then she was being beaten down…" Amanda said shakily before burying her face into Finn's shoulder and their arms wrapping around each other. "Everything was perfect and then she snatched it away…" She whispered.

"Clearly you know people will defend you… we'll never let that happen, Amanda. Not with a single breath between seeing it and acting against it." Sami responded, Finn nodding in agreement.

"Always… every one of us." Finn agreed.

Amanda felt herself calming down and her body lose the tension in her arms, back and neck as Sami headed downstairs and dialed Aestrid's number.

"Oh damn… how bad?" Aestrid asked after the call went through to her phone.

"Nightmare of Alexa destroying her miracle… but she knows we'll all protect her no matter what." Sami explained.

"Damn right we will." Aestrid agreed, raising up her screwdriver on her end of the call as she'd been fixing her skateboard with a new set of wheels, glancing at the screwdriver before lowering it again.

"Doesn't make the nightmares go away though…" Sami whispered.

At the same time in the hotel bar across Orlando, Alexa down the rest of her Jack and Coke.

"Another one." Alexa mumbled, the bartender obliging before turning to who had walked up and asking what he wanted.

"Anything that'll fuck me up." Seth answered before sitting down, Alexa seeing him.

"Not cleared for Mania?" Alexa asked.

"Not yet… I think might be best in a way. Gives the time to prepare for Stardust." Seth responded.

"Yeah. Closest they start the changing is towards Extreme Rules." Alexa said, sipping her drink as Seth drank his beer.

"Rough day training?" Seth asked.

"Something like that… crap with Mandy again." Alexa responded.

"That girl's a workhorse… but she would also be here drinking, where the hell is she?" Seth replied, looking for Amanda but didn't see her.

"Sleeping with Balor, I expect… they share their room enough as it is." Alexa answered.

Seth nodded and downed his beer before deciding on whiskey shots, handing two to Alexa and taking the other two in his hands.

"Ready?" Seth asked, Alexa nodding and the two drinking them.

"Damn, that's the good stuff!" Alexa said in a raspy voice.

"Jack Daniels… for a man who died from kicking a filing cabinet, he made some damn good drink." Seth responded, shaking his head a bit as the whiskey left the slight burn in the back of his throat.

"Damn right." Alexa said as the two continued drinking.

Sometime into the next day, they woke up in the Performance Centre, the hangovers hitting them.

"How the hell did we end up here and not in one of the rooms?" Alexa muttered as she and Seth sit up.

"Moreover… I hate to think of how we got here anyway." Seth responded, squinting as the light made his eyes feel like they were being squeezed in his head.

The door opened and both groaned.

"Car wrapped around a telephone pole… that's the reason I never drive after drinking." Amanda said as Finn led her into the building, Amanda absentmindedly adjusting her Bulletproof Balor Club tank top.

"And they won't even remember it happening… which is why some people just never learn." Finn replied.

"Oh ha ha, like you haven't driven drunk!" Seth retorted sarcastically.

"Backstabbing fuck." Amanda muttered, Seth narrowing his eyes at her.

"I'm hungover but my ears work, you know!" Seth responded angrily.

"Chill the fuck out!" Hunter said after walking in. "Mandy, they're waiting in the medic room. Seth, Alexa, it's mandatory for you as well." He finished.

"We've got enough drink in our systems to make a horse mount a playground ride, we can't be checked now!" Seth responded.

"Then sober up." Hunter said as Finn led Amanda to the room and helped her sit down as Dr. Amann had finished setting out the vial, needle and bandages.

"Any more pain? Any sluggishness?" Dr. Amann asked.

"No pain but had a rough night…" Amanda answered.

"Restless, couldn't close your eyes?" Dr. Amann questioned.

"After a nightmare." Amanda responded, carefully holding her left arm out as the latex tourniquet was tied around her arm. It didn't take long to find a vein but Amanda still cringed as the needle went in and felt Finn's left hand wrap around her right one.

"That'll happen, restlessness after bad dreams… things in life influence our imagination, and that becomes limitless when asleep." Finn replied, Amanda looking at him and nodding.

"It's nothing uncommon. We have many more bad dreams than you'd think, the difference comes when it affects waking up, if it does." Dr. Amann responded, moments before removing the needle after drawing a sufficient amount of blood. "Good call, Balor."

Amanda looked up at Finn in confusion as to what the doctor meant. "Distracted you so you wouldn't feel it so much." He explained.

"Thank you." Amanda said as her arm was bandaged and the tourniquet was taken off. The two left, seeing Hunter handing two cups of espresso to Seth and Alexa.

"That's the strongest we got… also, your last file called for a flu shot, Seth." Hunter said before heading away from them and to his office to call Stephanie.

"Any trouble with anyone there today?" Stephanie asked after answering her phone.

"Rollins and Bliss crashed a car and turned up in the parking lot, drunk out of their minds. More or less the same as yesterday other than that… and Mandy had a nightmare, then woke up and had to have blood drawn by the doctor, so she hasn't had the best morning either." Hunter answered.

"I really don't know how she's stayed sane throughout all this… I think it might just be a drop in her iron level that's caused what's happened lately, I really hope it's not happening again." Stephanie said.

"It could be good news, Steph, they might've gotten closer than we think." Hunter responded.

"Maybe… love hasn't exactly been known for a lack of surprises for thousands of years, that's for sure." Stephanie replied.

"Yep. I'll call ya back, okay? Love ya." Hunter said before they hung up and he saw Sylvia with the script.

"Where's Cody?" Sylvia asked, the young girl looking much healthier than the first time Hunter saw her.

"He's on his way in, the lord and lady of insanity crashed a car and he's got caught in the resulting traffic jams… and Sylvia, you're looking well." Hunter answered.

"Thanks… Roman and the family have really helped me. It was… hard to get used to eating normal amounts again. Or keeping from hiding every time I heard the front door open, but… I think I'm okay." Sylvia replied, before quietly reading the script to herself, having nearly finished the ending section. "So… you are the heroes of the… the… Milky Way." She said quietly, jotting down the lines on her notepad.

Cody reached the Performance Centre and he and Adrian got out.

"You are a crazy driver but thanks a million, Adrian." Cody said once he regained control of his body which was rushed from Adrian driving at 110mph.

"Anytime… how'd you get that knot on the back of your head anyway?" Adrian responded as they walked in.

"Just an accident." Cody explained.

In the hallway, Amanda was running her hands over her face in shock.

"Pills contaminated with… fertility drugs, how?" Amanda asked after lowering her hands and turning to Dr. Amann.

"Possibly a malfunction in the factory lines… or it was… deliberate by someone." Dr. Amann answered.

"But everything else is normal, nothing wrong with her iron or sugar levels?" Finn asked.

"Nothing at all, but an increase in hormonal activity due to the drug would explain the dizziness and weakness of the lower body. High enough levels can sometimes be confused with the symptoms of pregnancy for their near identical levels… the effects should clear in a couple of days." Dr. Amann explained.

The two nodded and headed to their locker room.

"So that morning we both woke up and mistakenly believed that we fucked, someone either drugged us or set it in motion…" Amanda said as they sat down.

"Must've… it could have been a mixed batch as he said, but then again… I know that Ace uses the same brand, and I haven't noticed anything up with her… if anything, she's been on her board more than ever lately, so one pill in a million is… a bit far-fetched." Finn replied.

"Once it wears off, thinking clearly will happen…" Amanda said before it hit her. "That little bitch!" She whispered, going to stand up but Finn stopped her and wrapped his left arm around her.

"Wait until it wears off before you go after anyone… not only so you can think straight but also so you can stay stood up when you do." Finn said, rubbing his hand up and down her left side.

Amanda heard her phone ring and answered it.

"Hey, John." Amanda replied, having told John about the scheduled blood test.

"Hey, sis… how'd it go?" John questioned, once he heard her voice.

"Normal except that my pills were spiked with fertility drugs." Amanda responded, John spitting out the coffee he had been drinking.

"Spiked with… Mandy, are you…" John started to reply.

"No. That test came back negative." Amanda responded, part of her disappointed as she briefly started to imagine what her and Finn's potential kid would've looked like.

"You feeling okay?" John asked.

"Yeah… they gave me a shot of Narcan though to flush the drugs out and it's making me shake badly." Amanda said as she felt Finn wrap a blanket around her.

"I expect so. Drugs at war with drug induced hormones, never was a good combination." John replied.

"Yeah. We'll call you back in a bit." Amanda said.

"Alright. You just rest, kiddo." John responded before they hung up and Amanda leaned against Finn, who saw the door open and saw Enzo.

"She's turning pale." Enzo said before Amanda bolted to the bathroom, Finn following her and Enzo heading back to where Dianne was.

"Uh oh, what's happened?" Dianne asked after looking up from the Stardust script.

"Sickness, by the sounds of it. Where you up to on there?" Enzo replied.

"The fight with Stardust… but here's what made me confused…" Dianne answered before flicking to the page next to the last. "Stardust 2… and there's no one listed for the part?" She said, pointing out a collection of lines near the end.

"They might be still deciding it… I just hope they find the right person." Enzo replied.

Dianne nodded and hoped that they would.


	4. From The Aftermath Of Chaos

"I'm serious… she really needs to rest up til this is sorted."

"I hope it is… after everything, she needs it."

Seth furrowed his eyebrows at hearing that and putting together his own thoughts as to the conversation between Dr. Amann and Hunter, he walked to the locker room he knew they were in and knocked on the door with more force than intended.

"The door won't feel the same pain your knuckles will!" Finn shouted in response.

"One of you open this door!" Seth replied angrily.

"Bite me!" Amanda snapped at him, throwing a shoe at Seth's head once he opened it.

Seth yelled in pain and backed up, closing the door before seeing Cody and Sylvia.

"What's gotten into Mandy?" Sylvia asked.

"She's gone all cranky, I think she's not the only one in one body, if you get me!" Seth responded.

Cody laughed as he didn't believe him, Seth glaring at Cody.

"You're serious…" Cody said.

"Cranky, pale, legs giving out, it just makes sense like nothing else!" Seth replied.

"Yep… boys in blue, we have a boy who's bonkers here, please send a boy in blue to give him a bonk on the bonts." Sylvia responded while motioning a phone to her ear with her hand.

"I ain't joking around!" Seth replied, Cody and Sylvia dragging him away.

Amanda pulled the blanket closer to herself, Finn sitting down next to her.

"Think I hurt him?" Amanda asked.

"You certainly rattled his nerves at least." Finn answered, lightly rubbing her shoulder. "Those drugs are really waging hell on you… it'll be over soon at least."

"Last time I felt like I was losing it, I was adjusting to the anticonvulsants… good thing I was cleared from them." Amanda said as she felt his hand wrap around hers and lightly squeezed it.

Seth was muttering to himself when Hunter stopped him and saw the bruise on his forehead.

"Oh damn, what happened now?" Hunter asked.

"In return to Cody throwing his boot at her mouth… she threw her shoe at me." Seth answered.

"It's happened before, she threw a shoe at Shawn once after he pissed her off." Hunter said, seeing Sylvia arranging silver and blue paints. "Gonna go with red contacts or no, Sylvia?" He asked.

"Actually, I was thinking… white ones. You know, entirely white eyes." Sylvia replied.

Hunter nodded and went back to the script before handing it to Cody.

"Improvise but not too much." Hunter said.

Cody nodded and headed off, thinking everything through.

 _ **WWE Raw, 2/8/16…**_

Amanda walked into Daniel Bryan's locker room and he could tell that she knew. Immediately, he walked over and pulled her into his arms, the two friends embracing each other.

"They won't clear you to wrestle…" Amanda managed to say.

"I'm sorry, kiddo… but I'm not leaving the WWE entirely, I might come back as the general manager when they split the brands." Daniel responded before they let go and sit down.

"They're gonna split the brands again?" Amanda asked as she brushed her tears away.

"Sometime in July. Think about it, you might actually end up on the same roster as Finn… hey, are you feeling alright? I heard about the drugging." Daniel responded.

"Yeah… just a bit tired though, nothing out of the ordinary." Amanda answered as Daniel noticed that her face had a healthier look to it with a faint hint of reddish pink in place of the paleness.

"Well you keep yourself healthy… and next time, aim for below their belts should Cody or Seth piss you off." Daniel said before they hugged.

Amanda left after that and stopped near a mirror, seeing Cody already in his Stardust outfit, paint and contacts.

"There are not… two of us, there's only one hero… one…" Cody said in his Stardust voice before groaning in frustration and turning to see Amanda. "I don't know if I can do this!" He pleaded.

"This would work when I'd had trouble with scripts or anything. Close your eyes, take a deep breath and just imagine it… you're standing in the ring with someone dressed like you, you have no idea why they're claiming to be who you are…" Amanda said as Cody's eyes were closed. "You want to dispute it but everyone wants the Cody they knew to come back… but you are damn sure that you're Stardust. The second Stardust won't relent… you want them to reveal their true identity but you'd feel like…"

"I'd be exposing my own identity…" Cody said, opening his eyes as it hit him before he walked over and kissed Amanda on her forehead. "Thanks, Pretty Girl." He said before heading off, having absentmindedly called Amanda by an old nickname for her.

"Maybe those days aren't as gone as I thought." Amanda said quietly, heading to the locker room and absentmindedly adjusting her asymmetrical print top and skinny jeans before seeing Paige walk up to her.

"Why aren't you in your ring gear?" Paige asked.

"Because I was pulled from the match… Hunter didn't tell you?" Amanda responded.

"He said that you had a medical check after the symptoms appeared and that you were possibly spiked, but nothing much else… there's no arguing with medical, I suppose." Paige answered.

"And Hunter tends to go a bit overprotective with me at times." Amanda said, Paige nearly laughing but in a good natured way.

"He just cares for ya, you're like a daughter to him… sometimes people assume danger rather than wait for it to show itself." Paige replied.

"Yeah, that's true." Amanda responded as they hugged. Amanda headed off and into the locker room, seeing Finn.

"Daniel tell you what happened?" Finn asked.

"He has to retire." Amanda responded.

"For better or worse… his health is in mind, but people are gonna miss him." Finn replied as he and Amanda sat on the edge of the bench.

"It just makes me think back to when Adam had to retire… if that broken neck hadn't happened, he'd still be entertaining the fans or pissing them off." Amanda responded.

"One or the other, we all get a bit of both at some point… but that one really left a mark. Retiring with age is one thing, it's easy to foresee and prepare for. But happening from injury… no one can prepare for that." Finn replied.

"They never can…" Amanda said as she read through the script to see a blank spot. "Improvising again."

 _ **Stardust/Cena/Balor segment…**_

"I'm not exactly sure why you're here…" Amanda said as Cody, in his Stardust persona, gently took the microphone and observed her top which was a bit roomier than her usual ones.

"There may be some things worth banding together for… are you having a bit of a plan there, you two?" Cody responded, the last part as he lightly tugged slightly at the top, showing its looseness.

"Well she's not in a match tonight…" Jerry Lawler said before looking at Michael Cole and the two pulling their headsets off. "Did they leave part of the script blank again?" He whispered.

"Yeah, improv until the next arrival, whenever that is. Could even be the next section entirely." Michael responded quietly.

The two put their headsets back on as the crowd chanted "Second gen Demon!"... which attracted the attention of Dean, who's music went off as he walked down to the ring and got in, the music stopping as he grabbed a microphone. He looked and smiled at Amanda before turning to Finn with a serious look.

"Now I'm not one to dive into personal matters… but be straight with me, is my Shield sister having your demon spawn?!" Dean responded with real fury.

"Dean, get out of here!" Amanda hissed.

"I'll take that as a no then… good, not happening yet." Dean replied, before he turned again and returned to the script. "Now apparently, someone out there has gained an awful lot of power… more than any single one of us could tackle down."

Before he could continue, Seth's music was the next to go off and he got into the ring, right knee still braced before the music cut.

"Mr. Architect, I thought you were back in Davenport-" Cody said, Seth snatching his microphone.

"Well then Davenport is probably a very happy place to be rid of me, certain… advancements have been made!" Seth responded.

"It ain't any of your business!" Amanda replied, half shouting as Finn put her behind him and Dean got in Seth's face.

"I suggest you leave off before something happens that we'll all regret at some point!" Dean growled.

"Fuck that, that little traitor screwed up!" Seth shouted.

"Hey, stick to the family friendly guidelines-" Dean responded before Stardust's music blared through the arena again… because no one outside of the company knew what Sylvia looked like, she was even more of a mystery to the WWE Universe in her own Stardust paint, outfit and contacts with her hair straightened and pulled back in a high ponytail.

"So… you are the 'heroes' of this gathering in which we stand. You have come far… yet still you all chase the shadows!" Sylvia said, her microphone linked to a filter of some kind which made her voice sound echoed, almost what many people would have thought to hear from an interdimensional being from a sci-fi movie.

"I'm the only hero. Mr. Rollins here seems more concerned with destroying the creation of the Demon King and Demon Mistress." Cody explained.

"For that reason… he will be challenged." Sylvia responded, before she looked at Seth. "The galaxy will not accept the intentions of such a… madman."

Seth yelled and charged at Amanda and Finn as Dean pulled Amanda out of the way to protect her and Cody and Sylvia pulled Seth off of Finn. Amanda pulled herself away from Dean and helped Finn up, who charged at Seth as soon as Sylvia and Cody jumped back.

After the punches, Finn pulled himself up and grabbed a microphone after pulling Amanda close to him before turning to Seth, blue eyes burning with anger as Seth looked up, his nose bleeding.

"What the hell… is this supposed to prove?! That you 'can't be stopped'?!" Seth questioned as he caught his breath a bit.

"What I proved… is that you have no right trying to lay your hands on her!" Finn growled as Seth pulled himself up.

After that, Finn and the others got Amanda out of the ring and left Seth there with an angry crowd booing him.


	5. Madness

_**WWE Fastlane 2015, after six man tag…**_

" _Hey… that was great out there." Seth heard, seeing Amanda… she reached out to hug him but stopped when he lightly pressed his fingers into her collarbone and nudged her back. "Okay, that's not like you at all… what's going on here, Seth?" The 24 year old diva said, confused._

" _Nothing." Seth answered and turned to leave… he reached the edge of the hallway when he heard "You know, I'm getting really sick of this, Rollins!" and turned back, walking to Amanda._

" _What did you just say to me?!" Seth demanded._

" _Lately, you've treated me like we barely know each other… and you might not care but that hurts me, Seth. What did I do wrong, why don't you want anything to do with me anymore?" Amanda responded, Seth slamming the Money In The Bank briefcase down in rage and muttering a name under his breath… but Amanda heard it. "He is my friend but the Demon King and Demon Mistress thing, it's just a storyline, Seth. Just like The Shield splitting apart was for the cameras, it shouldn't affect us backstage." She said before he turned back to her._

" _Well it does! Before we know it, you'll be in the same bed and room, you'll be walking out into the arena hand in hand, leg up and lips together and it will be far from 'just an act'!" Seth said._

 _Amanda closed her hazel eyes for a split second and raised her left hand, it connecting to Seth in a stinging slap… she pulled her hand back again, only for it to be grabbed and for her to see her old friend Joey Mercury._

" _Both of you calm down." Joey said, trying to keep the peace between the two._

" _Joey, stay outta this!" Seth snapped at him._

 _Amanda carefully pulled her hand away and walked off, Joey turning to Seth._

" _That was low, even for you! Mandy is a damn loyal friend, you idiot! And now you just want to kick her to the side because she's found the kind of happiness she hasn't had in years?!" Joey said._

" _The second I get my loyal friend back, I'll consider it!" Seth responded before leaving._

 _Down the hallway, Amanda pulled her hood of her Balor Club hoodie over her head, wanting to just disappear entirely…_

 **Present time…**

"Is everyone alright?!" Hunter asked as he and Stephanie ran in, Stephanie running over and hugging a badly shaken Amanda.

"That did go way off script… but the point was made. And I don't think anyone was expecting Sylvia to become a part of this… I didn't even know she was interested." Finn responded, as he briefly let go of Amanda to let her and Stephanie hug, his arms returning to her after they let go.

"I thought he had gotten on that plane." Stephanie said.

"Apparently not." Dean responded, noticing that Amanda had been quiet until he heard a slight hiss as Finn accidentally brushed against Amanda's right side. "Mandy, did I grab you too roughly?" He asked, Amanda nodding slightly.

At the same time, Seth was in another hallway after resetting his nose when he was grabbed by his shirt and saw John.

"Surprise, dickhead!" John growled before he threw Seth into the wall, the impact sending him to the floor. "What you did out there… was far from evenly repaid!"

"And what about what they did?!" Seth yelled as he stood up.

"Mandy's not pregnant, you idiot!" John responded.

"Somehow, I find that hard to believe! After all, you'll protect your little sister whatever it means saying, won't you?!" Seth replied angrily.

"You won't believe it from him, listen to this." Both heard, seeing Aestrid with some papers in hand and her showing them to Seth, who read them and saw that they were results from Amanda's Wellness test.

"The hell… drugged with a fertility hormone booster?!" Seth questioned as he read the papers he was handed.

"Yep… bad batch, intentional, whatever the reason for it, it showed up in her blood. Had she gone any longer without knowing, she would've gone to the drugstore and the home test would've been a false positive." Aestrid explained, Seth handing the papers back.

"Well then… I'm fucked in the head on this one." Seth responded.

"That much was already obvious." Aestrid muttered, folding the papers away.

Seth left and John turned to Aestrid.

"Dean protected Mandy out there but grabbed her too roughly, she okay?" John asked.

"More or less… aching and shaken, but alright. I think the uncertainty now is if the fans are gonna concentrate on how things got out of hand, or the new arrival no one was expecting." Aestrid answered.

"This all went from 0 to 100 in a hurry." John said as they headed to the locker room.

Amanda hissed slightly as Finn pressed an ice pack to her bruised side, Finn lightly stroking Amanda's hair.

"You okay?" Amanda asked, noticing the bluish purple bruise forming around Finn's right eye.

"He got me but I'm alright. Just a little ache, you know what they're like." Finn answered.

"He's crazy and needs some kind of therapy… preferably, the electrical kind." Amanda said, Finn looking at her.

"He needs sorting out some way or another… somehow I get the feeling that shock therapy would only turn him worse." Finn replied.

"It might…" Amanda said as Finn lowered the ice pack and lightly brushed his fingers against the bruised skin.

"You're sure you're alright?" Finn asked.

"Him charging at us reminded me of when he took that chair and attacked me, Dean and Roman with it… but I'm calming down." Amanda responded, adjusting her top as she felt Finn's left hand resting on her back.

"We all take a little while to do so… I know you want to but we'll find Sylvia later. Quite a session for her to come in on… but I hope she'll be alright as well. Right now, I think you need a bit of a nap." Finn said in response, as he helped her to stand up and head over to the couch at the edge of the room.

Amanda was lying down, preferring to use Finn's lap as a pillow and Finn pulling a blanket over her… she was half asleep as he lightly ran his fingers through her chestnut curls and out there stood Naomi, Sasha and Tamina, being interviewed by Renee… and Amanda sitting up.

"Naomi, given what just happened out here involving Amanda, Finn and everyone else, is there anything you want to say concerning everything?" Renee asked… but before Naomi could say anything, Sasha took the microphone.

"I'll say something! Ever since those two met, there's been nothing but trouble caused to everyone else! Team B.A.D _should've_ been the main focus tonight, _I_ should've been the main focus in NXT but did that happen?! No! Instead, it's Cena's kid sister who he can't even be bothered to keep controlled because he's too focused on his injured _girlfriend_ and that spin off reality show to notice when his sister's getting charmed and fucked by a horny little playboy-" Sasha replied angrily, her tirade cut off by the guys in the production truck cutting the microphone off.

Amanda looked through the script as Finn pulled her closer to him by wrapping his arms around her as tears threatened to spill from her eyes.

It was one thing for Sasha to go off script… it was another to completely blindside someone who thought they could trust her.


End file.
